


the real housewives

by nickgrimshawty



Category: Lovecraft Country (TV), Lovecraft Country - Matt Ruff
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Dysfunctional Family, Exhibitionism, F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-18 06:27:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,704
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28738728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nickgrimshawty/pseuds/nickgrimshawty
Summary: “You know you’re right Leti. I don’t know anything about marriage yet. And I can only hope my wedding is as beautiful as yours was.” Ruby’s eyes follow Leti walk to the fridge and hold it open in search.“Why can’t it be, Christina will certainly give you a bigger budget than she gave us,” she grumbles.“Leti you are so ungrateful it’s almost unbelievable.”Almost AU in which Eloise's daughters are the Kourtney and Khloe of 1950s Chicago.
Relationships: Atticus "Tic" Freeman/Letitia "Leti" Lewis, Ruby Baptiste/Christina Braithwhite
Comments: 11
Kudos: 39





	the real housewives

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to write something fluffy to cleanse myself of the recent chapter of Now You Can Touch Me. This fic is actually based off of the Australian TV Show Kath&Kim. It's hilarious, I recommend it!

Letitia Lewis – sometimes Freeman pulled into the driveway of the Northside mansion. Slamming her car door behind her, she starts yelling for her sister Ruby before she clears the porch. When she pushes open the front door she accepts the house is empty. Leti’s stomach grumbles, and she trudges to the kitchen. It had been three hours since she last ate and she was ravenous. _It isn’t good for the baby for me to fast_ , Leti thinks as she pulls open the refrigerator.

She groans. All that is in the fridge is vegetables and ingredients that needed elevated preparing. She holds her hand to her bump and sighs. She feels so alone. Finally, she finds a prepared dinner plate warming in the stove. She sits and starts eating into it earnestly, barely registering the burn on her tongue or that it was mashed potatoes. After her initial binge Leti starts to slow down and feel better. She pauses from eating and stares out the window in the kitchen.

The street light is a faraway glow, leaving only outlines visible. She thinks she sees the silhouette of a man approaching, but there is none. She shakes her head and tears start to roll down her cheeks. All she wanted was a perfect life. Was that too much to ask?

The front door of the house slams and Leti stands up anticipating her sister. Instead, Dee walks into the kitchen. She does a double take when she sees Leti, who purses her lips and crosses her arms. Dee was sixteen now, not twenty, yet it was 10 PM and she was not home. Instead she was here in Ruby’s kitchen all the way on the Northside in a shockingly short gingham dress.

“And what are _you_ doing here?”

“What are you doing here,” Dee retorts, already on edge, ready for a fight. Leti has her own reasons for needing a cathartic argument.

“You don’t get to ask me that! I am an adult. You think you’re grown?” Leti says.

Dee rolls her eyes, but she stops and gasps at the sight on the table in front of Leti. “You ate my dinner! You ate my dinner, you beach ball!” Dee yells, and now Leti gasps, standing up.

“You little…so I’m fat?” Leti says, moving around the table to stand in front of Dee. “I’ll show you fat. You go get your dinner at home. Where your little ass should be. Doing homework,” Leti finishes.

She’s standing close to Dee now and Dee steps toward her closer when she yells,

“Don’t talk to me like I’m a child!”

“You are!” 

“Why, because I’m not pregnant? I have my whole life ahead of me!”

Leti’s mouth falls open before she replies, “What is that supposed to mean?” 

Just as their argument descends into indistinguishable screeching, the front door opens for a third time that night. The two arguing don’t take notice of the new additions until Ruby steps into the kitchen saying, “Hey hey hey! What is going on in here?”

Leti and Dee turn to face Ruby and there is a moment of surprised silence before they both descend on Ruby. Leti walks forward complaining loudly about Dee while Dee moves around to Ruby’s side to yell about Leti in Ruby’s ear. “Hey! Wait. Stop right now.” Ruby holds up her hands. They both quiet and stand still, glaring at each other.

“Now, Dee, what is your problem?” Ruby turns to Dee, holding up a staying hand when Leti gasps in indignation.

“She ate my dinner!” Dee jabs a finger at Leti.

“Okay, I will make you something else. Leti, what are you doing here?” Ruby turns to Leti now.

Leti crosses her arms again and pouts. “What I am doing here is that my marriage is over,” Leti says, flipping her hair she repeats, “Over!”

“So, your marriage is over?” Ruby repeats.

Before Leti answers Ruby holds up her hand revealing a large shiny engagement ring and an even brighter smile. Only now does Leti notice the tall blonde standing behind Ruby, holding her waist.

“Well that is very ironic because I just got engaged!” Ruby giggles.

Ruby manages to shush Leti’s demands that Christina is a witch, has put her sister under a spell, and planned this all from the beginning. In a pained voice, Leti congratulates Ruby and Christina on their engagement before “retiring before she throws up”. Christina raises her eyebrows at Ruby when Leti grabs a large duffel bag with her as she leaves and Ruby shakes her head. Dee gets drowsy soon after eating and leaves to the room set up for her. Left alone in the kitchen at last, Ruby pours both of them the champagne she had been keeping for this occasion. Of course, she knew it was coming. A girl always knows. Everything had been meticulously planned. Her only variable had been time. Christina takes the other glass, and they clink. Ruby watches her fiancé finish her glass in one drink.

Christina smiles at Ruby admiring her and wraps her arms around her waist pulling her closer. Ruby sips daintily out of her glass, and then pauses.

“Christina, tonight you have made me the happiest woman in the world,” she says, cupping Christina’s cheek and pulling her into a kiss.

“I can honestly say I did not know happiness until I met you,” Christina replies, whispering against Ruby’s lips. Her hand snakes down to cup Ruby’s behind and give it a gentle squeeze.

“Oh! Christina…” Ruby remarks, surprised and interested. She hurriedly reaches back to place her glass on the island behind her but it slips off the end and crashes. Christina backs Ruby up against the island. Christina’s hands are boldly exploring her body while her mouth kisses behind Ruby’s ear.

“Christina! Not here,” Ruby says but sighs contentedly again as Christina’s mouth moves to her neck.

“We can do whatever we want, it’s our house,” she says against Ruby’s skin. Ruby smiles to herself and another sound of pleasure escapes her as Christina’s hands find their destination.

“Oh, Christina…that feels so good...”

When Leti comes downstairs the next morning she finds her sister perched on the edge of a sofa chair by the window. Direct light shines through and Ruby has her little hand in its beams, twisting her hand to admire the sun submitting to the gleam of her ring. Her lips were moving minutely and Leti suspected she was practicing interviews in her head again. Disgusted she stomps into the kitchen without greeting her.

Leti enjoys a few moments of peace and cold cereal before she hears the click of Ruby’s heels coming behind her.

“You’re out of Sugar Jets,” Leti grunts.

Ruby picks up the empty cereal box left on the counter and pointedly throws it in the trash. Leti digs into her bowl of breakfast but she can feel Ruby’s eyes on her. She decides to ignore her.

“You just had to eat the sugary cereal, Leti. I had the herbal egg milk on the kettle for you. I read about this,” Ruby gripes, bustling around Leti to lift the tea kettle off the stove. She stands next to her sister with her hand on her hip like she’s done nearly every day of her life.

“I need more than some damn egg juice to grow this baby!” Leti says. She sniffs the air.

“Ooo! Sausages. See, now you’re acting like Ruby,” Leti smiles at Ruby with a mouth full of cereal.

Ruby rolls her eyes. “I don’t know what you mean by that. And I’ll tell you another thing Leti, that baby needs healthy food to grow...” Ruby’s sentence trails off as Christina comes behind her in a robe and wraps her arms around her. Ruby giggles like she’s a teenager and Leti rolls her eyes. She goes to sit at the small table on the other end of the kitchen. She watches them through narrowed eyes. She was used to seeing Ruby under someone’s arms looking lovesick.

Now she had gone too far with it. Now she was in this kitchen kissing a white woman, giggling and whispering to each other about what Only God Can Know. Christina jokingly swats at her sister’s ass, and Leti can’t take anymore. She lets out a loud groan and doubles over, holding her middle. Ruby immediately jogs over to check on her asking if she was okay. When Ruby goes to check her over Leti drops the pained act and lets her performance be known. She gives Christina a deadpan stare and receives one back. Ignoring Leti’s negative energy, Christina announces she’s going to go get dressed.

Leti glares at Christina’s back before turning to Ruby, mouth open and ready to complain. Before she can start, the sound of sneakers squeaking invades the kitchen.

“Whoa! Slow down!” Ruby holds up her hands as Dee bounds into the kitchen. She is dressed in another frock, this one blue and a more appropriate length. Ruby grabs a plate of breakfast she prepared. Sliding it in front of Dee she asks,

“So. What do you have going on today, Ms. Lady?”

Dee immediately tucks into the eggs and sausage. With her mouth full she answers, “Nun.”

Ruby and Leti exchange a look over her head.

“Well, I actually know someone who might need your help,” Ruby says.

“I don’t want to help anybody.”

Leti makes a shocked noise. “You need to be in that backpack instead of in your purse,” she snaps.

Ignoring Leti, Ruby tries again, “Well, Dee you need something to do. You said you had nothing. Why don’t I ask Chris if she is doing any restoration? They always need help with the sketches. How does that sound?” Dee swallows loudly and nods. Ruby gives her a proud smile and pats her shoulder.

“Make me a plate too,” Leti says as Ruby walks back over to the stove. Ruby grabs another plate and starts preparing Leti’s breakfast. Dee shoots Leti a disgusted look and Leti sticks out her tongue in reply. Christina comes into the kitchen, wearing William, just in time to see Leti’s gesture. She pauses confused before deciding against understanding. Ruby hands her a cup of steaming hot coffee and she sighs, relaxed.

“Chris, what are you doing today,” Ruby says brightly.

“Ruby, they don’t want to hear about our relationship,” Christina chuckles and Ruby laughs too.

“So, she’s Mr. Jim Anderson today, huh?” Leti interjects.

Christina sighs loudly and Ruby says, “Shut up, Leti,” and slides her plate to her. Leti gives both Dee and the man Christina is inside a glare before she leaves herself vulnerable and starts devouring the contents of her plate. Christina grabs a biscuit from Ruby and kisses her goodbye with Dee following behind. At the slam of the door, Leti pauses from eating and throws Ruby a look.

“You need to stop coddling that girl and make her go on home,” Leti says.

Ruby rolls her eyes while she starts piling dishes into the sink. “Oh, hush up, Leti. Mind your own business. Such as, why are you here and why did you bring all your clothes?”

Leti sniffs. “My marriage is over.”

“You’ve only been married a month, stupid girl,” Ruby tuts, now inspecting her counter for spots.

Letitia says nothing and Ruby sighs again. Walking over to the refrigerator, she pulls out a popsicle, root-beer-banana-lime, and passes it to Leti. She takes it eagerly and starts sucking away with a pathetic expression on her face.

“What do you want me to do, Letitia? I can’t run your life for you,” Ruby says, giving an obvious glance down to Leti’s rounded stomach. Leti looks down at the floor, her eyes were building with tears. She waits to collect herself before looking back up into her sister’s eyes.

“I…was destined to be a public figure. You know it. We know it. Tic knows,” Leti starts. Ruby nods along because she’s tired already.

“Yet, Tic continues to embarrass me, and our unborn princely son.”

“People are watching me, Ruby. People want to know and this is not what I want them to know,” Letitia finishes.

“Well,” Ruby says, adjusting the bottom of her skirt in the reflection on the stove window, “People want to know about us, you mean.”

Ruby was soon to be a Braithwhite. This was heady stuff. Until now, there had been minimal news about their version of pioneering. The press had a history of respecting the Braithwhite’s privacy. The only good relationship with the cops is to have them fear you and they definitely feared her fiancé. They were one couple. There had been things thrown, comments made, signs left, but no other colored people followed their move so it died down.

Ruby knew how their white neighbors viewed their relationship. Ruby living here with a white man, unmarried, no children. She had come out to her car painted with ‘Whore’ one morning. Christina bought her the newest BMW in custom red, and it felt good to drive down the streets knowing they were watching sick to their stomachs. However, the label remained. It is funny how words stay and follow. Sometimes words even chase you. She had been ‘too grown’ at seven, ‘fast’ by twelve, and now she had graduated to ‘whore’. She could not run to her own community.

It was there in the whispers It was in the stares. It didn’t matter if they’d known her since she was in grade school. Letitia was their “babygirl”. The one everyone remembered running around in her diapers. Leti and her perfect family that had been in a Jet article, one that was ripped out and posted all over the Southside in pride. Leti was the angelic face of pending motherhood and black love, with Tic standing behind her as the perfect black man.

While Letitia became a beloved neighborhood celebrity, the Southside had a different kind of fascination with Ruby:

_Sold herself to that white man_

_Just like her mother_

_That one turned out just like her mother_

_That white man wants her for one thing_

The words stung each time and Ruby had been rubbed raw with the visceral rejection her relationship, and by proxy her, had received. Other women on the Southside had been with and even had children with white men and she had seen a milder reception. Her own sister was biracial. Still, that was what was expected. Of course, Eloise Baptiste had a half breed child with no father. It’s only a matter of time for her, they whisper about Ruby.

But, this. Ruby holds her engagement ring up to her face. This, changed everything. Her decision-making would no longer be called into question. Her relationship status would no longer be classified as “not to be discussed in front of the children”. Ruby, daughter of Eloise Baptiste, was getting married. She was going to be a family woman. She was determined to be just that. She had thrown away parts of her old self, and wanted to focus on shifting her public persona before the storm. She was nothing like her sister. She wasn’t the imagery for the perfect counterpart to a black man. She isn’t an accessory for any man. Instead, she is herself, misinterpreted and fascinating.

 _I have to admit I’ve come to love my infamy_ , Ruby thinks as she pulls in front of the bridal shop. Her sister Letitia is already inside, talking with the shop girl.

“That isn’t doing your stomach any favors.”

“Shut up, Leti.”

“You better get a long hair piece if you want that one,”

“Leti, will you let me choose some of my favorites first? Damn.”

“Oh, I love the new black wedding dress trend. It is so fresh, Ruby. Have you ever considered doing the black dress?”

Ruby collects two dresses she felt were decent and holds them up weighing each. She can feel the shop girl’s eyes on her. She does not want to project but, _does she know who I am and she’s watching me?_

“You don’t know how she is now, Ann. She’s so funny-acting, I bet that hundred dollar one not gonna be nice enough,” Leti stage whispers to the sale associate.

Ann giggles and Ruby’s face grows hot. “Leti! That is not true,” Ruby says before swallowing loudly.

Sliding the two dresses back on the rack awkwardly she says, “But I am going to think about it…” Ruby stalks out humiliated while Leti cackles behind her as she follows.

Maybe in revenge for the teasing, Ruby interrogates Leti about her relationship with Atticus on the car ride back home. From what she could gather, Leti was upset with Atticus’ over-working. He spent little time at home and seemed obsessed with the acquisition of money. He was rejecting family occasions.

“I have been through that with Christina too…” Ruby began, ignoring Leti’s exaggerated sigh. Letitia could be stubborn, selfish, spoiled and silly but she just wanted to have a family.

“What if I talk to Chris about giving him a nudge? They do enough work restoring those magic books and Christina would give him any raise.” Leti sinks down in her seat.

“Sit up. Goodness. What is the problem now?”

“He doesn’t want to be indebted to… _that woman_ , any more than he has to,” Leti gives Ruby a glance out of the side of her eye, “And frankly, I agree.”

“That woman is his cousin.”

“How many times do I have to tell you you don’t know nothin, Ruby?” Ruby snorts and then they’re pulling into her home at Hyde Park.

It was fall in Chicago. Every red leaf had its gold tip, the wind already sharp against cheeks. Ruby found comfort in the sunny days Chicago still had, because she could enjoy its rays without sweating. The puff from her chilled breath mingled perfectly with the smoke coming from her mouth. She stands outside with her sister, in the backyard courtyard. A small glass table sits between them, its paired chairs were an intricate aqua metal with a cushion on top. They made quite a sight. They were perfect opposites in a way: Letitia’s lithe and light skin versus Ruby’s sonsy and mocha.

Then, they had too many similarities to count. Today, they sit perched on the semi-comfortable chairs outside, passing a reefer cigarette between them. Christina had no idea Ruby smoked, especially the occasional joy-smoke. Ruby never did quite kick the habit. She planned to be a perfect wife eventually but today, she needed her release. Both women were on the precipice of traditionalism, and reeling from the expectations. Ruby was dealing with imposter syndrome. With each coming day, her wedding was closer. Another day for her to be humiliated in some way, or for Christina to change her decision. She needed to escape the clawing in her mind. Her own life was terribly stressful at the moment.

“Oh, you are an idiot,” Ruby sighs loudly.

Leti purses her lips. She manages to crack Ruby’s smugness with a snide remark about the nature of her upcoming wedding. While it was just true that Ruby could only get married with her partner in a disguise, Ruby rarely wanted the truth pointed out. Now her lips are pursed and there is an extended silence between them. Leti takes a long drag of the cigarette and holds. She feels the silence is a victory.

Ruby recovers and jumps back into the boxing ring. “Well, here’s what I think. I think you’re pressuring that boy too much. You knew how he was when you married him.”

Leti lolls her head side to side while rolling her eyes. “You don’t know the first thing about marriage, Ruby. That is so easy for you to say. The girl who doesn’t know the first thing. Tuh!”

Ruby snatches the cigarette and takes another pull. She puts it out then carries it to the small statue in the corner of their yard. She hides it within her usual cubby inside the statue. She stops by the table and grabs their lemonade glasses before heading inside, although Leti was not finished with hers. Leti follows her inside.

Ruby is leaning over the sink with her back to Leti. She breathes heavily for a couple seconds before she starts breathing normally. She spins around to face Leti and Leti jumps as Ruby’s previous position was making her anxious.

“You know you’re right Leti. I don’t know anything about marriage yet. And I can only hope my wedding is as beautiful as yours was.” Ruby’s eyes follow Leti walk to the fridge and hold it open in search.

“Why can’t it be, Christina will certainly give you a bigger budget than she gave us,” she grumbles.

“Leti you are so ungrateful it’s almost unbelievable.”

Just as Ruby is sliding the first slice of cheesecake onto the saucer, Christina appears. Ruby hands the first piece to her. Sometimes Leti truly hated her sister’s personality. Soon they all three have a saucer of pie, and they gather around the kitchen island to enjoy. Christina doesn’t appreciate her slice.

Instead she opts to shoot Ruby smoldering glances. She wraps her arm around Ruby and scoots her closer, whispering in her ear. Ruby smiles as she listens then bites her lip. Leti is loving this cheesecake. She can hardly think past eat eat eat. When her fork clatters onto the empty plate, her sister has left the kitchen. She’s alone with Christina. She looked like a sheet of paper, standing there all bright white. She looked sickly.

“So, Letitia –” Christina starts and Leti’s lip curls.

“That’s Mrs. Freeman to you.

“Oh? I’m glad to hear you’re moving back home to Atticus,” Christina says innocently.

Leti feels bested while Christina feels relieved. The conversation was going well to her.

Leti replies, “I wish I never asked my sister for help that day. I wish I never had her meet us at the museum.”

Leti…” Christina sighs.

“I didn’t know I couldn’t leave you alone with her for even a second. I didn’t know you were a predator,” Leti is getting into a stride when a bubble of gas shoots through her. At the same time, Ruby calls from somewhere in the house for Christina to come “help” her with something.

Leti groans holding her stomach but of course Christina pays no mind. She leaves in pursuit of her nasty little afternoon delight while Leti practically dies. She grips her protruding stomach, stumbling to the bathroom in the hall. Swinging the door open she wiggles out of her stockings and underwear hurriedly and flops onto the toilet. She takes a deep breath and releases, allowing her inner gas bubble to become a loud, unfortunately wet-sounding, fart. She hears a surprised sound and turns. Standing in the doorway is her husband, Atticus Freeman.

Horrified, Leti reaches forward and slams the bathroom door shut just as Tic is saying her name. She emerges several minutes later. She had collected herself in the bathroom and decided to be angry rather than embarrassed.

“So, you finally gave a damn,” she says, strolling up to Atticus who was leaning against the wall waiting for her.

“Come on Leti, I always care. I want you to come home.”

“Home?” Leti huffs, “Oh you mean that empty building you have me rattling around in while you run for fucking president!”

Tic covers his forehead as if the conversation was already causing him to sweat. Leti is disgusted with this sign of weary. She stomps to the sitting room with Atticus behind her. Switching on the main light, she gasps and Tic makes another surprised sound behind her.

“Ew! Get. Off! My SISTER!” Leti screeches. She was pregnant and becoming increasingly overwhelmed. The last thing she needed was to find her sister tangled up with Christina on the couch. Ruby does rush to get up, pushing Christina off of her and excusing herself. Christina stands there calmly and buttons up her shirt. At least Ruby had the decency to be ashamed, Leti thinks.

“Lovely to see you after hours, Atticus,” Christina smiles at Tic, finishing up her last button. Tic grunts in reply.

“So,” Christina says, “Anyone want a drink or some water or...?”

Her answer is a stony silence from both Freemans. Making a noise of acknowledgment that she has finally read the room, Christina excuses herself.

Tic takes Leti’s hand as Christina leaves and stares into her eyes. “Leti, listen to me. I know I have to be around more. I want to. I am going to try,” he says and Leti finds herself gazing up at him and his deep brown eyes. He was so handsome.

“That sounds like your best bet,” a voice says behind them and the pair jumps. Ruby is coming back into the sitting room in a new outfit. She sits back down on the couch as if the energy in the room isn’t electric. She starts thumbing through a magazine she brought with her and for several moments the only sound is the whoosh of her page turning. Ruby remembers she didn’t finish her thought. She looks over her shoulder at her younger sister and her husband.

“You have to be around more, Atticus. That seems to be the main problem here. And frankly, I agree,” Ruby says, turning back to her magazine.

Tic blinks. “No disrespect, Ruby, but this has nothing to do with you.”

“Yes, it does,” Christina answers, and they both jump again. This house was too damn big for this to be happening.

Christina sits in the armchair by Ruby on the couch. “This is her house, and that is her sister,” she says.

She reaches over and takes Ruby’s hand. Leti had had enough of Ruby pushing pause on her life.

“Can you two please give us some privacy? Just discussing the demise of a family over here,” she says.

Ruby tuts before she can finish her sentence. “We are in here waiting for Crime Classics to come on, it is 8PM. We are not worried about you,” Ruby answers. The giant radio was obviously not going to be moved on a whim so Atticus and Letitia opted to finish their important conversation in a bedroom.

Ruby was enjoying the sweet kisses Christina was peppering onto her neck and she shivers as Christina’s mouth starts moving lower. But she shakes her shoulders and tells her to pay attention to the radio show. Christina had a horrible attention span, she was finding. They had moved to sit on the floor in front of the radio with their legs crossed. It was nostalgic and innocent and everything beautiful she had come to expect from her relationship with Christina. She always felt a sense of youthfulness with her, like everything was for the first time. Christina removes her lips and hands and sits back on her elbows.

“This one is a little dull, I’ve heard other more…” Christina’s eyes scan Ruby’s body, “interesting stories.”

 _I doubt that,_ Ruby thinks. She loved this current story and she desperately needed to pay attention to the clues.

“Mmm baby…” Christina starts tracing shapes on Ruby’s back. “Did I tell you they started transcribing these and posting it in TV Weekly?”

Ruby smiles and twists to lay back, going to kiss Christina. The front door slams closed. Dee’s voice is calling for Christina. When she finds them in the sitting room they’re both standing next to the radio. Dee recognizes the show playing and plops on the couch saying she’s glad she caught it. Ruby goes to fetch them all snacks and a blanket. By the end of the radio show, all three were on the edges of their seats. The final sentences were going to be a huge reveal.

“We have some good news for everyone!” Leti yells over the radio.

The group groans and Leti places her hands on her hips. When every eye was on her, she holds up the cluster of her and Tic’s hands as they stood together.

“I have decided to move back in with Tic, and we’re going to continue our beautiful family life.” Ruby says aw.

“Oh Leti, that’s just the bees’ knees,” she says, rushing around the couch to go hug her sister. They go to pack up Leti’s belongings. Christina is left with Tic and Dee. The latter was playing with the channels on the radio looking for another show. Christina explains to Tic she doesn’t mind going alone on their next expedition.

“You stay here, spend time with Letitia,” she says, placing her hands in her pockets mostly to mimic Tic.

Tic sets his jaw and Christina wants to roll her eyes but she stays neutral. I’m good, Tic answers.

“I’ll see you 8AM tomorrow morning,” he says like he’s reporting to a sergeant.

Now Christina does roll her eyes. “Stay here. Stay with your wife. So, I can be alone here with mine, ok? Please,” she chuckles at their problem.

Atticus doesn’t laugh. “Wife?” he scoffs. Christina’s expression hardens and she gets the hint. She turns to leave telling Tic she doesn’t want to see him tomorrow.

Dee corners Christina on the way to her bedroom and asks to come along with Christina on her trip.

“I get magic. I’m good with it. You said yourself. Let me come,” Dee begs. There is no doubt in Christina’s mind that she could benefit from having Dee on an expedition for magical texts. She would be the one helping to restore them, after all. However, it wasn’t up to Christina. She nods.

“Ask your mom and I’d be happy to have you,” she says.

Dee frowns. “Come on, Chris. That isn’t fair.”

Christina shrugs. She understood Dee’s predicament but she also thought she needed a push. “Ask her. Go home and talk.”

Dee pouts and looks away.

“Look, go ask her then tell me the answer. You want to be an adult? Be mature.” Christina gives Dee’s hand a squeeze before continuing to her bedroom.

Ruby was behind them the whole time and she winces at Christina’s harsh delivery. _And she has the nerve to beg me for some damn kids,_ Ruby thinks as she walks up behind Diana. “Dee,” Ruby says and she knows she scares her.

Dee jumps but then automatically sags into Ruby when she sees its her. Ruby holds her, seeing the baby she always watched who would always need her. Still, everyone criticized her for her spoiling. She had to do right by Dee in this situation and be strong.

“Diana,” Ruby starts, and Dee lifts her head and looks up at her. She knows this tone of voice from Ruby.

“You have to go back home. I know things with your mother aren’t perfect, believe me, I understand but – “ Dee pushes herself out of Ruby’s arms. She stands there rigid with her hands clenched into fists.

“I keep telling you. All of you. That isn’t my mother. She isn’t the same. No one listens to me!” Dee crumples against the wall with a sob and Ruby gathers her in her arms again.

“Oh Dee…Baby, she is your mother,” she lifts Dee’s head with her hand and makes her look at her.

“Unfortunately, people change. It’s hard to deal with but we have to because we’re human.” Tears start rolling down Diana’s cheeks and Ruby pulls her in to a hug.

“Honey,” she starts rubbing her back, “Don’t worry about being a child or being an adult. Just go be a daughter. Your mother loves you.” Dee’s breathing slows and she takes one last deep breath, her chest heaving against Ruby. She steps back.

Wiping her eyes, she nods. “I want to go tonight.”

“Really?” Ruby is surprised but agrees to go help her pack her things.

Christina and Ruby experience two weeks of Newly Engaged Bliss. They had been living alone for over a year but the recent weeks of having familial boarders gave them a renewed appreciation for fucking in the hallway. Christina had jumped on Ruby right when she came back from dropping Dee off, and for the next several days they took advantage of all their space. Christina had even delayed her work trip to stay with Ruby, and give Diana more time to talk to her mother about it.

Ruby had a healthy sexual appetite but she was realizing Christina may be insatiable. While usually she found it sexy, Ruby was becoming weary of all this lovemaking due to a repeated spat they were having. She kept telling Christina they definitely needed to wait on having a child. She was getting tired of Christina asking her to define ‘wait’.

Ruby has all this on her mind Saturday morning, two weeks after Leti left back to Atticus. She’s deep in thought and isn’t paying attention to her surroundings when she steps out to go to her car.

“Slut!”

Ruby’s head whips around and a spindly white woman is standing behind her.

With spit gathering at the corner of her mouth, she starts to advance up the driveway toward Ruby.

“Ni – “

“You better get away from my sister, you bitch!” Letitia Freeman, pregnant and all, is bounding across the grass toward their intruder. Ruby is still shell-shocked but she has the sense to wrap her arms around her baby sister and hold her back.

“Get off my lawn before I get my dog on you,” Ruby yells at the woman, who is already turning and jogging down the street. Replacing her is a black cab, pulling up to the curb and a dark skin man leaning out and flashing a quick photo and making them both jump. Of course, there is no dog in the house, and there also is no Christina or Tic. They hop in Ruby’s red car and speed down the street.

“I thought you said you were going to stop that whole blue blood wedding announcement shit,” Ruby says.

Her and Leti had made it to the guide shop and busted in on Christina and Tic’s workday.

Christina shrugs. “I don’t have as much pull at colored papers.”

Tic slaps down the newspaper delivered to all the shops and walkups on the Southside. The Black Patriot was dabbling in salacious tabloid. ‘Local Blues Singer Engaged to White Heir of Merchant Empire’. Ruby is wincing. She wanted attention but she wasn’t ready for this. She’s quickly realizing she may have never been.

“Colored papers, is it?” Letitia speaks up from her corner. She had been focusing on cooling down after the altercation and catching her breath from the excitement. Now she speaks in a mimicking voice, as if Christina sounds like a cartoon mouse.

“Colored papers, pull at the colored papers...” Leti hops up from her stool. Crossing her arms, she directs her anger at Christina, predictably. “Well, just how much pull do you have, Ms. Moneybags? Do you have lawyers? Judges? Bodyguards? Because I hope I don’t have to tell you that there may very well be, okay, a damn cop waiting to arrest my sister when she goes home!”

Silence follows Letitia’s statement and its truth. Despite the legality on paper, interracial marriages were almost always taken to public court and deemed “immoral” or some other label through a loophole. Many people had faced jail time. The lucky ones went to jail, the unlucky ones were lynched.

Christina was on the other side of the room in a corner herself, and suddenly she was feeling it. She looks over at Ruby but Ruby is looking down at the table, picking at the paint deep in thought. Her mouth is frowning and her shoulders are slumped. Christina’s chest feels tight.

“Nothing will happen to you, I promise,” she says to the top of Ruby’s head. Ruby looks up at Christina’s tone and the corners of her mouth lift in a little acknowledgment.

“Oh, so – “

Leti is interrupted by the jingle of a bike as Diana pulls up to the garage of the bike shop. She throws her bike to the side and runs up to the group, gripping some paper in her hand.

“This is crazy,” she says to Ruby, and she plops down the leaflet on the desk.

Ruby peers over at it and her stomach rolls with dread. It’s a smaller syndicated paper, nevertheless popular in her favorite hair shop. A picture lifted from one of her concerts flyer is on it, her name, and controversy conveyed by the rest of the cover.

“Uh! Dee!” she says shocked as she flips to the back and recognizes Dee’s signature in the list of contributors.

“I did the comic section, how was I supposed to know you were the cover?”

Ruby nods absently. She was losing herself for a moment, disassociating and letting the whooshing in her ears overtake her. If she didn’t sit down soon, she was going to pass out right here on the concrete of the garage.

“Excuse me,” she says, her voice wobbling. She turns and quickly bounds up the stairs inside the guide shop. Diana looks around the room, upset, wrongly assuming everyone was judging her for making Ruby cry.

“Ruby! Wait!”

Diana chases Ruby up the stairs. Christina is still upset and turns back to her work with her back to Letitia and Atticus. They’re bickering quietly in the corner until Leti yells for Tic to get out of her face. Christina keeps her back to them, giving them privacy, but also lost in her own mind.

She was feeling stressed. White people were doing terrible things again and she was the only white person around here. Ruby never made her feel outcast but even she sometimes treated her as a representative for her race. She starts writing, though she is mostly scribbling with her thoughts on overdrive. Once again, she feels like her whiteness is a horrible beacon that constantly draws suffering to her family.

Christina hasn’t registered that she’s been alone in the garage with Leti for several minutes until she snaps, “Shouldn’t you be making phone calls? Get your little…connections,” Leti’s voice is intensely condescending.

Christina is immediately irritated because she doesn’t have the mental energy or armor for this right now. Ruby is nowhere to be found so she forgoes her usual politeness and ignores her. Heels click on the concrete smartly followed by a clackity stride toward Christina. Leti is leaning on the table behind her now, making Christina feel even more boxed in.

“I told Ruby she didn’t know what she was getting into with you, “Leti says from closer behind her. Christina sighs loudly but says nothing.

“I told her you weren’t safe. Or…normal,” she scoffs and Christina can hear her disdain. Her face is getting hot and she’s loathed to turn around and let Leti see the effect her words are having on her.

“All that scary magic shit you do…” Christina lets out a dry chuckle. Ruby knew all about her magic. She was a bragger.

“You tried to kill Tic!”

Letitia Freeman had a knack for finding an insecurity and twisting the knife. She did it easily, in many ways it was a coping mechanism from all those years of her hair being pulled and her skin being mocked. She was a fairly bitter person.

“She doesn’t know you’re a recluse homeschool freak,” she tries and it’s a slam dunk. Christina slams her pen down and faces Leti now.

“Shut the fuck up, Letitia.”

“Ha! There it is,” Leti says, following Christina around the garage as she tries to put distance between them.

“The real you.”

Christina mocks Leti now, in a baby voice, _the weal wou_ blah blah. She flops down in the chair at the desk in the corner. Leti stands on the opposite end. She leans on her arms, over Christina’s head but Christina feels no intimidation.

“Admit you never liked me.”

“Of course, I don’t.”

“You are threatened by me!”

“You are my prison sentence.”

Leti gasps in reply. She jabs her finger at Christina, who is leaning back in the chair with her hands folded on her stomach.

“You wait until I tell Ruby.”

 _She won’t believe you_ , Christina wants to say but she keeps silent. They both know it.

The situation is saved by the appearance of Ruby, back from her breakdown in the bathroom. She’s slinging her small vinyl purse over her shoulder. She pushes a pair of red sunglasses onto her face.

“Let’s get on going, L,” she beckons Leti to the car. Leti practically skips over to Ruby’s side.

“Bye, honey, I have a cake tasting,” Ruby throws over her shoulder. She opens the door of the driver’s seat.

“Where’s Lyta?” Leti pauses. Ruby pauses as well and lets out an exasperated sigh.

She gives a dramatically quick look around the garage. “Her ass…” Hippolyta walks into the guide shop. She’s wearing a bizarre pair of jeans with a staining that looks almost textured. Her hair was something indescribable.

“Is right there!” Ruby is satisfied and slides into the driver’s seat without another word.

Christina watches the car pull away. Hippolyta says nothing to her as usual, and Leti throws her a smug smirk as she slides next to her sister and probably into her ear. The gust of air the car makes taking off feels disrespectful. Christina was disheartened Ruby hadn’t even laid eyes on her before she left.

“I’m not that different,” she says out loud to the empty garage.

Despite her stoicism with Leti, Christina did need to start making calls. Luckily there were several judges in Chicago that wouldn’t dare go against the Braithwhites. Unluckily, it wasn’t every judge. Christina still had the Attorney General to worry about.

“Will they make an example of us?” She’s on the phone with her family’s estate lawyer.

“It depends,” the lawyer sounds unsympathetic and monotonous. “Your fast adoption by Samuel Braithwhite could come into question. I would reach out to Christina and make sure she’s on board with all this.”

“She is,” Christina answers in William’s voice.

“Well, let me disperse some reminders. What do you plan to do about attacks?”

Maybe Christina was wrong. The man sounded genuinely concerned.

“The local police. They don’t want to but they will.”

“That’s what’s important. In the meantime, keep a handle on the press. Do not have the whole city calling for justice, I’m telling you,” the lawyer’s voice is grave.

Christina swallows. She nods then realizes.

“Okay,” William’s voice says. Without another word, the lawyer hangs up.

Later that night, he calls Christina Braithwhite, in a show of unexpected loyalty, and checks that she has truly been informed of William’s situation. She gave confirmation of her support and he offered the same advice. It didn’t feel like enough but it was all she could do for now. It wasn’t until Ruby arrived home safely from her day did Christina finally feel optimistic.

Letitia did envy the sparkling diamond tennis bracelet dangling from her sister’s wrist. She envied her sister’s recent meteoric rise to infamy, her offer from Jet magazine for a $200 spread. But she knew her brief flashes of jealousy were nothing like the envy her sister felt for her. While Ruby had an offer, Leti had an actual picture in Jet. Ruby, on the other hand, had had to decline her offer for the safety of everyone.

Leti felt twinges of sympathy for her older sister. She had known for a while Ruby had sex with women, but she never imagined she would choose this path, to be condemned to live her life in the shadows. Still, it was her choice. Now, she had to sit there and watch Leti become a perfect family. It wasn’t her fault. The two sisters were having their usual clandestine smoke outside, puffing away. Spring was coming and with it the Big Braithwhite Wedding. The area under Ruby’s eyes had thinned, this event was sucking the life out of her. It was a sad sight to see.

“You keep on losing this weight Ruby, you’re going to hate your wedding pictures,” Leti says, ashing the cigarette and passing it.

Ruby takes it and rewards herself a long drag before deigning her sister with a reply.

“I still have another two fittings. They just can’t seem to get it right,” Ruby starts to mutter to herself.

Leti rolls her eyes. She doesn’t want to lose her sister in her stress thoughts right now, she wanted to enjoy their smoke break. In the months following the media’s discovery of her sister’s engagement, Ruby had spent her time darting around to various venues to plan her wedding, while trying her best to generate the least attention she could. It was hard, but they managed to contain much of the gossip to the Southside of Chicago. Letitia suspected Ruby was the one summoning the one-off black reporters that would occasionally pop up outside the nail salon or beauty shop asking for a civil rights quote from Ruby for making history.

“You ought to tell that girl you don’t want any kids,” Leti says.

She reaches for the cigarette back but Ruby moves it out of her reach and hits it again. Leti sighs and sits back in her seat, resting her hand on her much larger bump.

“I want kids. Just not now.”

“Please.”

“Ronny Howard is talking about paying for me to make a record. I mean, it’s unbelievable. Where does a baby fit in all that?”

Leti wants to tell Ruby she’s just the Talk of the Moment so bad but she decides to let her delusion continue. She leans forward and snatches the stick out of Ruby’s fingers.

“Ruby,” she takes a drag and holds. Lifting an eyebrow as she exhales she shakes her head. “Where will these children _go_? What will they _do?_ ”

“If you’re talking about them being biracial, you of all people sound absolutely ridiculous.”

Letitia gives up the fight.

“Anyway, it has been fun trying for a baby,” Ruby laughs to herself. Yuck, her baby sister expresses. Ruby is lost in a memory and eager to share.

“I’m telling you, L, Christina’s tongue is- “

“Absolutely not. Don’t you dare.”

Ruby throws her hands up before settling. She didn’t understand this attitude.

“Fine. Tell me about your recent lovemaking with Mr. Salesman. I could give you tips,” Ruby offers. Leti is disgusted again and aghast. She refuses to share this information.

“I’ll have you know we’re doing great,” she sniffs.

Every head in the church was turned toward the perfect couple that was the Freemans. Today was the day of Letitia’s big performance in front of the congregation. The pews were filled, a sea of paper fans flapping to generate air in the cramped space. It was worth it to all of them, for today was the day one of the Southside’s most treasured jewels was shining bright. The pastor shushes the excitement before passing the stage to Letitia.

Atticus gives her one more hug and a peck on her temple before he takes his seat in the front. The pews _aw_ at the genuine love. Mrs. Freeman gives her husband a twinkling smile, internally she is thinking that he resembles a neutered dog, dragged into a suit and civilized interaction. Still today she was grateful for the visuals. Gripping her mike, she takes a deep breath.

“Go head, baby!” Someone encourages from the back.

Leti starts to sing.

After her performance, Atticus and his wife stand outside the doors of the church accepting praise. Most of the black people in Chicago come by and shake Tic’s hand, compliment Letitia on her performance and her beauty. The procession is interrupted by a titter going through the group. Heads were turning toward the grassy parking lot of the church where a navy-blue Cadillac convertible is pulling up. Leti bites the inside of her cheek as she watches her sister get out of the car and brush herself off. She’s wearing an all-red dress ensemble, complete with a red hat and fascinator.

 _Oh please,_ Leti thinks. Her sister was really leaning into this reputation. Ruby wobbles over to her sister, her heels not pairing well with the gravely walkway up to the simple church. She hears the familiar whispers. Ruby gives her sister a one-armed hug that Leti stiffly returns. Ruby offers her a bouquet of cheap lilies.

“Well, you missed the performance,” Leti says first. She can’t contain the angry wobble to her voice, but she keeps her volume down and her face polite.

Ruby makes a face close to apologetic. “I was in the studio, I lost track of time, I am so sorry.”

Leti takes the flowers. She wanted to throw them on the ground and crush them under her heel but she was in the Lord’s House.

“I’m not surprised you hesitated to come,” Leti says.

“I’m sure you didn’t know if your ass could step a toe in without bursting into flames,” Leti says through her teeth, her smile widening as she waves to an admirer over Ruby’s shoulder. Ruby shrugged. She’d expected this reception. She had already gotten what she wanted out of this outing anyway. She squeezes her sister’s arm.

“I have to take off, girl. I made that jellied beef mold and need to take it out,” Ruby says.

“You didn’t make that,” Leti is irritated that Ruby probably made such a dish.

Ruby shrugs again and leaves, acknowledging Tic with a quick pass over of her eyes. Leti purses her lips watching her leave. She narrows her eyes at the group of teen girls whispering excitedly in awe at Ruby’s dramatic departure.

Ruby jerks her head away from her sister’s probing hand, groaning up at her when Leti stabs her in the eye anyway.

“I can do my own makeup myself if your little ass would sit me up,” she snaps at her sister.

“I’m just trying to help ya,” Leti says, but she does pedal the hospital bed to lift her sister to sitting up straight. She’s careful to move gingerly around her sister’s two suspended legs, wrapped in casing. She wobbles and bumps the strings holding them up. Ruby loudly winces in pain. Leti goes to finish her sister’s eyeshadow.

“That’s enough, Letitia,” Man Christina says from beside Ruby.

“I’ll say when my sister looks ready to meet the press. You don’t know the first thing.”

“Oh, don’t even say that word. Press,” Ruby repeats the word. She groans again dramatically.

Christina takes her hand on her lap. “It was beautiful, honey, really,” she assures Ruby from inside William.

“No, it wasn’t,” Ruby mutters, her head bowed.

“Listen, I’ve seen worst,” Leti tries.

Ruby throws her sister a withering look. “Really, Leti. And what wedding have you been to worse than the bride ending up with two broken fucking feet?” 

Letitia contains her snort. She does truly feel for her sister and her ruined nuptial. Still –

“Hey, you called them negroes. You know you did,” she tilts her head at Ruby. Ruby swallows. Christina looks down at their hands in her lap, staying quiet. She hates that Leti has a point right now.

“I called a handful. I wanted a few tasteful pictures in something respectful like the Freeman Papers not to be trampled by half of the damn Southside, trying to throw cooked rice on me and shit,” Ruby says, her voice raising by the end as she angrily remembers.

“You sound so bougie right now, and it’s disgusting,” Leti comments.

Ruby ends up pregnant because of course she does. She couldn’t fucking walk. All she had to do all day was sit around and lay down. The day she realizes she’s pregnant is the same day they are called by Christina’s informant at the police precinct. The protection was scheduled to halt secretly. This all hinted at something worse coming down the pipeline, either an outright attack or a legal one. It hits her that she’s six weeks late as she’s crying on the steps. Christina is beside her, rubbing her back. They’re both scared. Christina promises to do whatever it takes to protect Ruby.

Ruby told her right then and there what she suspected and from that day forward there had been a push of unneeded support. Despite the dark clouds of society hovering over her “sunshine”, despite her sister’s historic contention with her wife, despite the minimal improvement she had seen in her mobility, a dinner party is thrown. Her sister hosts the party with not a hint of irony in her smile. The food is good enough, but Ruby finds her sister’s attempt at a beef mold desperate.

Christina eats up the flaccid affection from her cousin, as if Atticus had anything to do with the planning of this horrible get together. Their relationship did seem changed for the better since the wedding. Ruby liked seeing them off to the corner, talking and not arguing. They looked like two macho men picking each other’s brains, although one was Christina.

The party was mostly Leti’s friends. They were gathered around her, trilling how her figure was during her pregnancy and how long and luscious her hair was getting. Ruby gets a slight consolation in seeing Diana and Hippolyta arrive together. They seemed in a much better place. Looking at Hippolyta’s unusual high waisted shorts with patterned tights, bright colors that resembled a traffic cone and her wild hair with gold flecks in it, Ruby can understand why Dee is overwhelmed by the changes in her mother. She was glad to see them working it out. The party was a bust to Ruby. Just like this sudden air of celebration being shot into her life. Ruby wasn’t feeling festive or fertile or beautiful.

She was slipping into a depression. Christina had noticed but found no validity in it. Her general feeling was: get over it. Ruby didn’t want to get over it. She wanted assholes sexists like Ronny Howard to get over this notion that a pregnant woman was a woman disabled. And she was disabled. She wanted her right foot to get over it, and finally be rehabilitated so she could at least go back to wearing heels.

Christina makes eye contact with her across the party and she bites her lip with a little smile. All this talk of starting families was probably getting her all warmed up as usual. Ruby returns her flirty look but it’s like whatever.

Something was said to her in between the congratulations and the introductions. A bubbly woman from Letitia’s pack had gushed that she was “just like you. Big chest, hips for days.” The woman suggested white wine for the entire duration of her pregnancy to maintain her figure.

Ruby took it as a prescription and found herself perched against the fridge in her kitchen more often than not, sipping away on a pinot grigio or anything relatively clear and alcoholic she had in the house. Her sister had come in one afternoon to bother her and found her buzzed without shame. A bottle sat on the counter in front of her and there was barely a glassful left. Leti notices this as she tries to pour herself a glass. Hitting the end, she shakes the bottle in front of Ruby.

“Desperate to keep that figure, huh?”

Ruby just nods, the room was spinning a little. She gives her baby sister a weird thumbs up.

Christina was looking particularly fine tonight; the lamp lighting of their sitting room could never do her justice. Ruby eyed her hungrily, as she fiddled with the dials on their radio. She was wearing her blonde hair in a ponytail which she rarely did. Her long beautiful neck was exposed. Her simple back dress had ridden up and her knee and the creamy expanse of her thigh was visible now. As she settles on a station, Ruby beckons her over.

Christina lifts Ruby to standing, wrapping her arms behind her to steady her. Ruby still struggled with walking. They twirl disjointedly around the room, Billie Holiday crooning over the airwaves.

“You’re gorgeous,” Ruby tells Christina.

Christina spins them to a stop in front of the couch, and Ruby leans against the edge of the arm. Christina forgets to thank her wife for the compliment and focuses on kissing her, touching her. Ruby’s hands start feeling along her back for her dress zipper. Christina dips her head lower, focusing her attention on Ruby’s chest. Ruby makes a little noise but stops midway as she’s unzipping Christina.

“Let’s just go to the green room,” Ruby jerks her head in the direction of the bedroom adjacent to their living room. But Christina likes the music and the temperature where they are.

“Let’s stay here,” she slides her hand up Ruby’s thigh.

“But…the windows…” Ruby is apprehensive at their two large bay windows that have the curtains wide open.

“Who cares?” Christina says next to Ruby’s ear. “We have no neighbors.”

This was true. Since they moved in there had been a steady stream of For Sale signs appearing within the radius. Since the announcement of their engagement, the area was really clearing out, especially their street. Ruby arches an eyebrow before looking back at Christina. She catches her mouth with hers and Christina can feel her smiling against her lips.

Who knew that pigs could be so organized? Ruby actually had an idea that this may be coming but with everything going on, she had gotten lackluster. Now, she was pressed against her hallway wall as an angry white mob outside threw beer bottles and shot at their windows.

A few were bold enough to still be in their uniforms. Ruby knew most of them were probably from the force considering their recent refusal to continue to protect them. She makes terrified eyes across the hallway at her sister, Letitia, who was over for a simple visit and never asked for any of this. She too was pressed against the wall, trying to be as flat as possible. Neither of them could be shot due to their invulnerability but the key was to avoid the mob realizing they were home. This weekend happened to be the one Christina and Tic left for their latest excursion and they were even more vulnerable. A group this size could easily drag them out of their home. Leti is taking deep dramatic breaths and Ruby is about to shush her when Leti falls to the ground with a loud cry.

Ruby runs over to her, still trying to shush her. When she kneels next to her sister, she sees the liquid puddling under her. Her water broke. Fuck. The plan has changed. Now, Ruby needed to get her baby sister out of here any way she can so her nephew can be safely born. Leti has pulled herself up by the leaning on the wall.

“I can’t…I can’t stay here…” she groans holding the bottom of her stomach.

 _I know, I know,_ Ruby thinks. She can hear the sounds of the mob shifting outside, their plans are changing too as they realize there is people home.

Think, Ruby, think.

“We’re fucking bulletproof! Let’s go!” Leti yells at Ruby seeing her hesitation.

“We can’t just fucking walk out there and show everyone we can’t be killed. Don’t we have enough problems?” Ruby comes to her senses and opens the hallway closet. She pulls out an Enfield L4, a lightweight machine gun.

Leti’s eyes widen before she huffs. “Fine. Let’s just fucking go.”

Ruby starts to look around for something again. There is the sound of banging on the front door.

“I’m not having this damn baby on your floor!” Leti roars as she watches Ruby putter about.

“Well don’t you want me to pack your makeup?”

“Of course!” Leti screeches back.

Ruby takes one more deep breath. She reminds Leti to do exactly as she says. Taking another deep breath, she aims the gun at the door and shoots through. There’s the sound of yelling and scrambling. Pulling Leti by her arm and behind her, she kicks open the decimated door. Scattered along the lawn are various white men in hats and vests. They’re crouched low to the ground in anticipation now, holding up their pistols up like a rosary.

Ruby isn’t the best shot but a machine gun rarely misses. She aims shots at the giant tree close to her and a large branch creaks and falls onto the lawn. One man narrowly dives out of the way while another is trapped. The men around him abandon him and cower back to their cars. Only a handful of attackers remain, those left on the other side of the lawn. Ruby pushes her sister behind her and they advanced backward to the garage, facing the small group with her gun.

They hold the standoff until they reach the car. None of the group makes a move, their weapons are no match for hers. She hops in the driver’s seat and they take off at racing speed. The racist cowards left on Ruby’s lawn did try to shoot at the vehicle as it drove away, but it was protected by magic and the bullet ricocheted back, causing the group to scatter and scream.

“I’m so proud of you, baby,” Atticus Freeman kisses his wife’s head. Letitia resists rolling her eyes at the yellow lilies her husband brought as congratulations. The important thing was that he was here. There would be a photographer coming soon. She cradles her new babyboy tighter to her chest. She gently rubs her nose along the soft forehead, smelling his fresh scent.

“He’s beautiful,” Tic sighs in awe next to her. They share a kiss before returning to gazing at their prize. Something occurs to Letitia.

“Get over here and do my makeup!”

She commands Ruby away from her sickening reunion with her wifehusband. Christina was distracting Ruby from what should be one of the most important days of her life by demanding details about their attack and inspecting Ruby for any injuries. Ruby nods and grabs Leti’s makeup bag. It isn’t long before she’s putting the finishing touches on Leti’s makeup, sliding lipstick on her sister’s lips and then sliding the same shade on her own.

“Here, I’ll hold my nephew while you tell me if you like it,” Ruby says, exchanging baby for handheld mirror.

No one knew when the follow up journalist for Jet was going to be coming by but it never hurt to be ready early. The group is surprised when a flurry of four journalist arrive minutes later. Ruby starts to smile like a movie star as the group ask after her immediately. Apparently, word was already spreading of their shoot-out. One man steps forward and identifies himself as the journalist from Jet. He surprises everyone by asking if he may speak to Ruby Braithwhite. Ruby does a double take but she agrees, Leti’s mouth dropping open at the audacity. The other reporters seem to take his cue and transition to asking Ruby questions, first innocuous ones about congratulating her sister. Ruby starts to bounce her nephew innocently, using him as a prop for her picture-perfect moment. The teen photographer for the Freeman Papers snaps a photo of her.

“What makes you so eager to be a great aunt?” the kid asks.

Ruby makes a little contemplative face. Christina is watching off to the side, marveling at her wife’s star power. None of the reporters have any idea that the other half of their coupling is in the room, as she isn’t wearing William. All she’s thinking about is how cute Ruby is right now.

“Well,” Ruby looks at the reporters from under her lashes and the Black Patriot writer sucks in a breath. “I guess it’s because I’m going to be a mother, too.”

The reporters rush forward with word of this new information, their questioning overlapping excitedly.

Leti groans loudly from the hospital bed.

**Author's Note:**

> how did you like them apples? as usual thank you for reading and leave any feedback you can.


End file.
